4 Link Suspension for 57' Tbird

[Solo57Bird]

Anyone done away with the old leaf springs and just gone with a 4-link suspension on their 50s model Tbird?
Rather than replacing the leaf springs, I am considering doing a 4 link in the back with a new coilover or airbag.

[Jimntempe]

I looked at a car which had been converted to new suspension front and back that used airbags. The owner had inherited it and didn't know much. When looking at the front I was not able to find any shock absorbers at all in the suspension. Plus it looked like there was very very little actual suspension travel. Passed on the car. Just mentioning it as things for you to ask about if you get serious about converting and start looking at kits.

[55blacktie]

Air bags take the place of springs and shocks.

[Jimntempe]

I can see how they would work as a spring but don't see how they would provide any damping as a shock does. Is there a shock hidden inside them?

[Solo57Bird]

The RideTech Cooride setup in the front works with an airbag replacing your coil spring, and then you would need to weld on the shocks since you no longer have a shock in the coil spring. Hope that helps to explain.
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[Jimntempe]

The RideTech Cooride setup in the front works with an airbag replacing your coil spring, and then you would need to weld on the shocks since you no longer have a shock in the coil spring. Hope that helps to explain.
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FrontRideTech.jpg
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redtechFront.jpg

That makes sense. The one I looked at didn't seem to have ever had the shock part installed. It seemed to be a work in progress when the old guy passed away. The son was selling. It had a transplanted ford engine and manual trans too from something much newer plus a fancy AC system that had never been finished.

[55blacktie]

Apparently, not all air-bag systems are the same. As I stated earlier, there are air bags that integrate shock and spring; there is no external shock absorber. It could be that the one you looked at doesn't require it. Sounds like more research is called for on your part before going forward.